daniel chigunwe
Business Writer
City businessman and Minister of State for Harare Metropolitan Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Oliver Chidawu, has died.
Chidawu died in early hours of Tuesday.
Posting on his official Twitter handle, Secretary in the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Nick Mangwana said;
“I am saddened to learn of someone I considered a good friend, Hon Oliver Chidawu. For long time we used to have tea every Sunday and compare notes. He always spoke his mind. Rest in peace, Dziva.”
A renowned businessman, Chidawu set on the board of Bindura Nickel Corporation and has also been a director at starafricacorporation, chairman at Pelhams Ltd, Zimplow Ltd and group chairman at ABC Holdings Ltd.
He was also chairman of African Banking Corporation Zimbabwe, non-executive chairman of Manders Group and founder of Kuchi Group of Companies.
The businessman was also a major shareholder in Bitumen Construction.
A former Harare mayor, Chidawu was in March 2019 appointed the Minister of State for Harare Metropolitan Provincial Affairs and Devolution by President Mnangagwa.
This was in accordance with Section (2) of the Constitution which obliges central Government to cede more powers to provincial councils for them to determine local development priorities.
Chidawu was also a founding shareholder and director of Heritage Investment Bank which merged with First Merchant Bank in 1997.
He was an articulate businessman who has been invited as speaker in business seminars including those hosted by Harvard University.
A chartered engineer, Chidawu had engineering and business administration degree qualifications.
He is on record the youngest mayor Harare ever had (29 years).
As a businessman, Chidawu formed his contracting company in the 80’s and built a number of key infrastructure in Zimbabwe and has had some of the famous international companies such as the Anglo American and Citi Group as his partners.
Chidawu had over 20 000 people under his care as a direct result of the businesses he started from scratch.
Bongani Ndlovu